


Bang, Zoom, Straight to the Moon

by jupiter_james



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Ianto is an astronaut, M/M, NASA AU, Vanya is a NASA wife, Vanyanto, after the war
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-14
Updated: 2016-07-14
Packaged: 2018-07-23 21:22:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7480602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jupiter_james/pseuds/jupiter_james
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the war and moving Vanya to the USA, Ianto joins NASA as an engineer. He's offered the opportunity to fly on the Saturn V before the first men land on the moon. This is a story of his adventure and how Vanya handles becoming a NASA wife.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bang, Zoom, Straight to the Moon

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JoAsakura](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoAsakura/gifts).



It's 2:00 in the afternoon when the blue Bel Air skids to a stop in the gravel driveway and Ianto slams open the door, jumping out, jumping back in to turn the car off, and then running up the porch steps to the house. He throws the door open and startles Vanya so much that he drops all of his gardening tools to the kitchen tiles and swears a Russian blue streak. Then he takes the sight of Ianto in, standing in the entryway with an overflowing briefcase, more file folders with papers spilling out in his arms, wearing a haphazard NASA uniform, and not his usual tidy suit. His face is flushed and he's grinning from ear to ear.

"You are back home early," Vanya says, eyes wide.

"Something happened," Ianto answers, his voice trembling with excitement.

Trepidation fills Vanya even though he realizes nothing is wrong on a basic level. His palm still itches to grab the phantom gun at his waist, so he curls his fingers tighter around the trowel. "Oh?" he says, attempting levity.

"I made it," Ianto breathes, green eyes brighter than usual and about ready to spill over. He seems to suddenly remember all of the things that he's carrying, and lets the briefcase fall to the ground. He paws through the stack he's holding and finds what he's looking for, shoving the file at Vanya and causing him to drop the rest of his tools.

He takes it, but doesn't open it. He glances down to see the NASA logo stamped on the front officially. He's always thought it was a beautiful design. He runs his palm over the slight embossing. "You... made it?"

The rest of the files tumble out of Ianto's hands and he takes Vanya by the shoulders, shaking him back and forth to emphasize every word. "I. Made. The. Astronaut. Corps. I'm. Going. To. Space. Vanya."

Vanya freezes for a split second while words sink in and then his heart flips and he throws himself at Ianto, squeezing him in an impossibly tight bear hug that actually manages to lift the taller man off of his feet. He wants to laugh and cry and yell and fuck Ianto right then and there in a complicated emotional hurricane. He settles on burying his face in Ianto's neck and breathing in his cologne. "Поздравления!" he says fiercely into warm skin, trying to get his brain to calm down and think of English words. "Happy," he manages. "Happy news!" 

Ianto's strong hands curl against his spine tightly. "Thank you. I never would have even tried this if you hadn't believed in me enough to tell me to."

Vanya pulls back just enough to tilt his head back and scowl. "You are better than all of them. You fight in the war, you are pilot, you are smartest, handsomest. NASA would be making the big mistake not to take you."

Ianto's chuckle is that mix of amused and affectionate that Vanya is addicted to. "My looks have nothing to do with it."

Vanya snorts. "They do. Astronauts are famous."

"I guess so." He runs his hands down Vanya's sun baked arms. "We have to move to Houston. Are you okay with that?"

Vanya shrugs. "I can make home anywhere." He's not 100% exactly sure where Houston is, and doesn't care.

Ianto entwines their fingers. "I did something amazing in a past life because I did nothing to deserve you in this one."

The casual, sincere compliment makes Vanya flush redder, but he accepts it with a muttered, "Достаточно." He moves back and surveys the house. "When do we leave? There are many things to pack."

Grinning, Ianto says, "one month."

xxXXxx

The NASA wives take to Vanya almost the second the movers show up. Ianto and Vanya had arrived a week earlier with the essentials and to familiarize themselves with their new, spacious ranch-style house, and the surrounding suburbs and town. Ianto had attended his orientation, but officially had one more week to unpack before starting his training. They'd been left alone for the most part the first week, but the trucks out front clearly signaled a proper welcome to neighborhood.

Ianto's new co-workers show up with their families to welcome them, bearing house plants, casseroles, cakes, potato salad, beer, and before either of them quite knew what was happening, Ianto is politely manhandled into the backyard to fire up the grill while the children play in the grass and the wives drag Vanya to every room to help with minor decorating.

It's not long before they're having a full fledged housewarming party. People float in and out of the house from the porch door, Ianto only catching glimpses of Vanya as he goes to refill the cooler with beer, or grab more potato chips. But every time he smiles. Vanya never leaves the wives' sides, sitting amidst them in his hibiscus Hawaiian shirt that clashes alarmingly with his hair and scowling seriously as they talk to him and share plates of food all around. He answers their questions and asks them double in return; everything from an astronaut's work schedule, to the launch, to social engagements, to how best to maximize space in the yard for a vegetable garden. He's scowling the hardest when some of the children venture in, one plopping directly into Vanya's lap as he sits cross-legged on the floor in front of the coffee table playing Spades.

When it's all said and done, the party breaks up around midnight and Ianto and Vanya stand at the front door to wave off the last of the guests. They both turn in unison to survey the wreckage. Ianto takes Vanya's hand in his. "You looked like you were having the time of your life tonight."

"These people are very good," Vanya says decisively. "They don't care that I'm Russian."

"You hope we stay here."

"If we have more nights like this, yes." He digs in his shirt pocket and pulls out nearly a dozen note cards, handing them off to Ianto.

"Recipes?" he asks, flipping through them.

Vanya smiles wryly. "I didn't have heart to say to them I can't cook worth a damn."

Laughing, Ianto takes the cards to the kitchen, picking up stray plates, glasses, silverware, and bottles on his way, Vanya trailing behind. "Don't worry about that. Some of these are great. Make ahead stuff for when I'm gone and you don't feel like burning the house down."

They clean in silence for a few minutes until Vanya slaps a dish towel over his shoulder after drying the last of the glasses. "Maybe I'll put the, uh..." he motions with his hands, "swinging... hammock outside."

"You hate sleeping outside," Ianto points out.

"It will feel closer to you when you're in space," Vanya says a little sadly.

Ianto abandons sweeping the floor to tug the Russian into his arms. "That was a romantic thing to say," he smiles into his coarse hair.

"It's warm here, anyway," Vanya answers.

xxXXxx

Ten days before launch after a semi-sleepless night and more sex than either one of them had managed since they'd turned thirty, Ianto performs the same ritual happening in other houses in the neighborhood just after dawn. There's one more kiss. Then another one more. A tight embrace that lasts a long time. On the one hand, Ianto is more excited than he's ever been in his entire life. The mission he's about to fly will one day get people to the moon. He knows the systems and engines inside and out since he'd helped build the damn things. His team is ready, and they'd make America proud. On the other hand, he hasn't been away from Vanya, even for a day, for years now. There is no Shepard without Pastushok, until there had to be, and he didn't know what to do with that.

"I'll see you before the launch," he says.

Vanya holds him tighter. "I won't be able to touch you."

Ianto cups Vanya's face in his hands and kisses him soundly. "Just keep looking up, okay? And watch the TV. And come to the live broadcast. I'll be home before you know it." He leaves before he can't help staying.

xxXXxx

Vanya likes Florida. He can buy more Hawaiian shirts in nearly all the stores. There are a few more hours left before he's due to be taken to the launch site with the other families to wish their loved ones luck. Just thinking about it makes him grab six more shirts right off the rack in agitation.

"He'll be fine, you know," Marilyn says from somewhere behind him. "They all will."

Vanya swings around to see the brunette with a small handful of summer dresses. She holds them up with a self-deprecating laugh. "I couldn't decide which he'd like to see more. Gotta leave them with a perfect final image before they launch, y'know? It's good luck."

Smiling, Vanya reaches out and pulls out a bright, sky blue dress with white flowers. It matches her eyes. "It looks like sky and clouds. Wear this one."

She glances pointedly at his stack. "Those are all awful."

Vanya wrinkles his nose. "I can't be pretty, so I have to be bold."

That makes her laugh outright. "Then go with the green and blue palm leaves. It's the worst of them all."

Together, they make their way to the checkout, and by some unspoken agreement they also walk together to the hotel, and share a pizza in Vanya's room, and hold hands tightly as they take the shuttle to the meeting spot. It's dark outside and the launch pad and parking lot are lit up with spotlights. Vanya walks beside Marilyn, nearly bumping into cars as he tips his head far back to take in the sight of the machine his professor had helped build. Under his breath and too low for his companion to hear, Vanya mutters, "your fucking spaceship better work properly, Von Braun."

But then he's fully distracted seeing the three men standing across the roped off footpath in their mission blues among several official-looking people talking to other official-looking people. Vanya forgets about everything else and runs to his side of the rope. Ianto is there, grinning fit to burst.

"Hey, Red," Ianto says cheerfully.

"Hey to yourself, Professor Spaceman," Vanya answers.

It sets them both laughing for a moment. "I've missed you this whole damn time," Ianto calls over, smile dimming a bit.

"They don't keep you busy enough, then," Vanya says, but he's happy to hear it.

"Ha, ha," Ianto retorts dryly. "I'm not the one who showed up here to send his boyfriend off wearing the ugliest shirt ever made."

"If you hate it, you can come back safely, take it off of me, and burn it."

"Now _that's_ something I look forward to."

Vanya tries to smile. It's too watery. "Are you scared?" His voice is too clogged to carry, so he has to repeat it.

"Yeah," Ianto answers, shrugging and looking less confident. "I'm scared as hell."

"That keeps you alive," Vanya answers.

The grin returns. "It sure as shit does."

They watch each other for a few moments. Vanya wishes that he'd thought of more things to say, but his mind is pretty blank. Ianto is standing in a halo of backlighting from the powerful halogens behind him, and Vanya can only take in every detail until the official-looking people tell them that it's time to go.

Ianto takes a step back, cups his hands around his lips and yells, "Я люблю тебя!"

All heads turn towards them as Vanya whoops and shouts back, "愛してるよ!"

Marilyn takes Vanya's arm with a full smile and waves to the astronauts. "We'll see you back on Friday! Don't be late!"

xxXXxx

Vanya tells Marilyn the next morning that he won't be joining the rest of them on the bleachers for the launch. He doesn't think he can handle the crowds with as raw as he's been feeling for the past two weeks. It's too _real_ to sit there with the other wives and yet more official-looking people. Wisely, Marilyn tells him of a nice spot down the Cape where he can watch the launch in spectacular view, but also in peace. He hugs her firmly and thanks her. He's become a hugger since moving to Texas.

From his seat in the tidal grasses an hour later, the Saturn V rocket almost looks like a toy. It's hard to believe that Ianto is in there, strapped in, doing all the pre-flight checks, and hoping all the math geniuses in Mission Control haven't sent them on a flight pattern that will burn them up in the atmosphere.

It takes an eternity, though Vanya hardly minds the wait. It's a fairly cool morning for Florida, and there's not a single cloud in the sky. He checks his wristwatch since he can't see the countdown clock at the launch site or hear the announcements to know if they're go or no-go. The seconds hand clicks over and for a moment, there's nothing. But then Vanya sees the blooming of smoke underneath the rocket. The roar of the boosters reaches him a few moments later, delayed by the distance, and the entire ground shakes as the Saturn V begins it's terrifyingly slow ascent heavenward. 

Vanya jumps to his feet screaming encouragement in English and Russian until his throat hurts and his face is wet. The rocket rolls gently, grows smaller and smaller, and then it's gone from sight. Nothing but the exhaust trail left to show that it was even there.

It's the most spectacular, awe-inspiring sight he's ever seen and it leaves him with profound loneliness and pride. That's his man up there among the stars. His picture is already covering the magazines and newspapers. The pre-flight interview has aired repeatedly. Vanya's bought every magazine. Every paper. The mission patch. The collector's coin. He reaches for the coin in his pocket now and squeezes it. He can't remember the last time that he prayed, but he bows his head and mutters, "God, you make sure Von Braun son of a bitch is blessed. Bring my Ianto back, please. Thank you."

xxXXxx

Empty houses have a way of being both comforting and saddening. It's a heavy weight that rests on Vanya the second he opens the door to their Houston home after returning from Florida. Someone from NASA calls him every day to update him on the mission and their flight orbiting the moon. Then he calls the other wives and compares notes. That's good for a few hours, but then it's back to realizing just how acutely _not there_ Ianto is. He's left the freezer stocked full with meals that Vanya only needs to put in the oven to warm. His dirty clothes are still in the hamper. His glasses are on the bedside table on top of the technical manual he'd been reading.

He'll be home soon, but it's a hell of a wait. Part of Vanya is truly irritated with himself because he'd been alone forever. Until Ianto. He'd been a lot of things until Ianto.

There's a stack of mail on the hall table, collected by one of the neighbors, and Vanya takes his time sorting it, and halfway through the stack, discovers a letter addressed to him in familiar handwriting. It's from Ianto. Sent during his quarantine. Vanya wants to kick himself for not having noticed it sooner. He's lazy about the mail. Tossing everything back onto the table, he opens the letter and unfolds it carefully. 

Ianto's handwriting is precise, all caps. 

_Vanya,_

_It's been about a week since I got here to quarantine, but it feels like a year. We're doing training and final checks, but the downtime is boring. It's strange being without you. I didn't think about it until now, but we haven't been separated like this since we met, have we? I keep expecting to wake up next to you, and then I don't. It feels wrong the whole day. I miss you. And I also want to tell you something important just in case I don't come back. I know you'd be mad at me and wouldn't listen if I told them to your face, so please don't stop reading the letter, okay?_

_It's a hard thing to write, but I have to. If this mission goes sideways, I need you to know that you'll be taken care of. We had to write a Will to submit before the flight, and mine leaves everything to you. That's because everything I've got that's worth anything at all is already ours. My mom and dad know, and they support my decision. I just wanted you to know that in case it happens. And when I come back, which I will, I won't change anything. For the rest of my life, whatever's mine, is yours - ours. I can do that much for you since you've done everything for me._

_I really love you, Vanya. You already know that, but after being away from you for a few days, I've realized I take advantage of that a lot. Don't let me do that. Remind me to at least tell you how much you mean to me every day._

_All my love,_

_Ianto_

Instinctively, Vanya wants to tear the letter up and burn it in the fireplace for bad luck. What the fuck is he _thinking_ about mentioning dying while he's floating around in space with only a paper-thin piece of metal and foil keeping him safe from the vacuum and death outside. 

He clenches his teeth and folds the letter again, slips it back into the envelope, and takes it into Ianto's office to lock it in the drawer with all of his important files. 

Vanya never comes in this room. It's Ianto's space, and his alone. He leaves the door open all the time, a symbol to Vanya that he's allowed in there any time that he pleases, but the Russian usually leaves his professor to his work in there, only bringing him tea occasionally. 

Now, it's different. Ianto's mark is all over the house, but here Vanya can actually _feel_ him like a ghostly presence; almost with substance. It's like if he turns his head slowly enough, he'll see his professor standing in the doorway with a grin and asking him why he's sitting in his chair looking so sad. Relying on someone else so completely had never been something that Vanya had ever wanted. Until he did. Until he was living in a city he hadn't even heard of back in Russia before the war. Until Ianto's glasses were sitting on the nightstand. Until he'd been willing to give up his dream job if it meant people wouldn't be so suspicious of Vanya anymore. Until he'd had his parents over for Christmas and, without hesitation, introduced Ivan Pastushok, love of his life. Until Vanya had planted tomato seeds in the yard that had grown a bumper crop. Until he'd broken his arm scaling an apple tree without a ladder. Until he'd almost died of sepsis in a cave during a war he hated while Commander American Boy Scout had refused to leave until he could get them both to safety. 

Until there was no Pastushok without Shepard, either.

Ianto doesn't have to prove his love every day. It's always been there clear as day.

xxXXxx

Vanya watches the mission broadcast from space and touches Ianto's mouth on their new color TV when he's on camera showing his grinning dimples to the whole world. Suddenly, Vanya hates all of the articles with all of the exclamation points that proclaim Ianto to be _THE HANDSOME BACHELOR WHO CAN TAKE YOU TO THE MOON AND BACK!!!!_

He watches the reports and the newscasts, and finally, holding his breath while watching the splashdown, and not leaving the sofa until he sees the capsule floating in the ocean with a helicopter ready to pull them out and bring them home. He's so excited for Ianto to be back on the same planet again that he can't sleep that night, and for the first time since Ianto had left Earth, Vanya is able to sleep indoors in their bed rather than on the hammock he'd put up between the two oak trees.

Then he waits for Ianto to return to Houston. Do his debriefings and get back home. Vanya waits at home. He makes sure that everything is clean and ready. He's reorganizing the odds and ends on the coffee table when he hears a key in the lock. The door opens.

Ianto's standing there in hall in his NASA jumpsuit. He's wavering between a smile and worry. "I'm home," he says.

He sounds exactly the same. Vanya's not sure why he thought he would sound different. "Welcome home," he answers.

They're on each other in an instant. At first it's just holding one another. Vanya sinks his nose into Ianto's neck and breathes in his cologne. Ianto's hands are warm and firm rubbing his back as he buries his lips into Vanya's hair.

"I love you," Ianto says, spreading his fingers against the back of Vanya's neck.

"I looked up every night like you said," Vanya says. "I'm so glad you're back. So proud. Ianto you made a miracle, right?"

Ianto pulls him up into a fierce kiss that lasts for ages. The clothes come off after that, though it's only enough to get them into the bed. Ianto is exhausted trying to readjust to Earth's gravity. Vanya's anxiety is finally bleeding off. All either one of them wants to do is sleep.

They're both in the early stages of dozing off when Ianto's low, bassy rumble lulls Vanya further towards true relaxation he can't achieve when sleeping alone. "It was incredible, Vanya," he begins. "The launch was terrifying. Noisy, bumpy. But then the boosters cut off in stages and it's like... free falling. You can feel yourself go weightless even before you undo the belt straps. I can't even describe it. And... the stars. They were so damn bright. Without the ozone layer to block the light, you can see almost forever in the blackness. You would have loved it. Then we swung around the dark side of the moon, and it was pure silence. We lost radio contact with Houston, and it was darker than anything I'd ever experienced before. I thought it would kind of scare me, but it didn't. It was so calming. Then we came around and Earth was there out the window. Looked so tiny. Then when we reentered the atmosphere, the heat was intense. Flames everywhere. I couldn't even keep my eyes open for it. I don't even remember the splash down. After that, I couldn't wait to get home. To see you."

Vanya wiggles around until his back is pressed against Ianto's chest. Ianto's movements are still heavy, but he remembers the position well enough, bending his knees so they're pressed against the back of Vanya's, hand splayed over his chest, chin resting against the crown of his head. 

"You have seen something most people in the world will only dream about. I can't even imagine this."

"It feels like a dream already."

"A good dream?"

"A _great_ dream."

Vanya swallows. "Will you go back?"

Ianto tightens his arm around Vanya. "I think... it was a once in a lifetime experience. It was hard to leave you, and I can see how stressed out it made you for weeks. It's made me a better engineer, though. I've learned some invaluable things to make better rockets. I'm thankful that I had it. But from now on I think I'll stick to building stuff to put other people into space."

Vanya tries hard not to let his foolish relief show. "Я люблю тебя, 'Yanto."

There's no space left between them after Ianto shifts forward again. "愛してるよ, Vanya."

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a drabble. I'm going to go cry and watch Apollo 13.


End file.
